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With star forward Abby Wambach sidelined with a broken left orbital bone, the Western New York Flash opened the National Women's Soccer League season with a 3-1 win over the Washington Spirit on Sunday at Maureen Hendricks Field at the Maryland SoccerPlex in Boyds, Md.

Spanish midfielder Vicky Losada finished with two goals — one in the first half and another in the second — and one assist to power the Flash (1-0).

Defender Brittany Taylor added a goal and goalkeeper Lydia Williams stopped two shots for Western New York.

Christine Nairn scored in the 50th minute to tie the game for the Spirit (0-1).

"It's very important, very nice to start well," Flash coach Aaran Lines said by phone. "The ladies did a great job today. We came in and were organized. It wasn't where we wanted it to be, but our players did something pretty special today."

Lines was forced to shuffle his starting lineup after Wambach suffered the broken left orbital bone in the national team's recent 3-0 win over China in San Diego. Wambach, 33, who led the Flash last season in scoring with 11 goals and eight assists in 19 matches, is day-to-day, said Lines.

Fourth-year Flash forward Adriana Martin was moved to the central position and newcomer Losada, a Spanish national team player, was inserted at left midfield. She was tucked slightly inside, Lines said, and kept floating inside, making it difficult to Team USA defender Ally Krieger to mark up.

"She did a very good job," Lines said. "She gave us an advantage in the midfield."

Rochester plays at Chicago on Saturday before returning home May 3 for a matchup with defending league champ Portland.

"The philosophy, the way we want to play the game is attacking with balance and defending with balance," Lines said. "I thought we implemented a lot of the points. It can't be perfect at this stage, but it's all about starting well and getting our legs underneath us."